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Invasion of France
NATO United States France |side2 = Soviet Union |goal1 = |goal2 = |commanders1 = Jeremiah Sawyer Jean-Baptiste Sabatier† |commanders2 = Unknown Soviet commander(s) |forces1 = US Army French Army |forces2 = Soviet Army |casualties1 =Heavy |casualties2 =Heavy |notes = }} The Invasion of France was a Soviet operation to invade the country of France. The invasion commenced during the opening stages of World War III in the summer of 1989. This operation has been abandoned after a US and NATO counter-attack destroyed the Soviet HQ. Background Two months prior to the invasion, the Soviet Union declared war on Europe following NATO's failure to provide financial aid to the Eastern European countries, as the Soviets' failing economy threatened to destroy the Warsaw Pact. They quickly invaded West Germany and many other nations in Western Europe as a means to maintain the Soviet power in the world. Eager to build upon their progress, the Soviets decided to attack the vital part of NATO by conquering France. Besides spreading the Soviet Union's influence into the West, the attack against France would distract NATO forces from their primary goal of fending off the Soviets everywhere else on Europe as they struggled to defend France. The Invasion The Soviets sent their naval forces through the Mediterranean Sea, where they plowed through the U.S. Sixth Fleet and continued onward towards the southeastern coast of France. Their forces landed near the city of Marseilles and the French Army was forced to retreat. The Soviets made significant advances into the countryside and threatened to push further north unless action was taken. While the Soviets secured their coastal outposts, they launched a series of air raids across many cities in the country, including Paris. These raids caused major infrastructural damages and numerous power outages. Demoralized by the attack, France had no choice but to request American reinforcements. U.S. Intervention and Counterattack The U.S. immediately sent several battalions to France to aid in its defense, among them were the 5th Battalion commanded by Colonel Jeremiah Sawyer. They worked in conjunction with Commandant Jean-Baptiste Sabatier, the commander of French Army. Sawyer put Lieutenant Parker in charge of one of Sabatier's units after its commander was killed in a mine blast, against the Commandant's protests. The NATO forces then launched their attack on the Soviets on the coast. The first phase of the attack was the liberation of a French harbor village where the Soviets had established a fire base to fire on NATO positions. Parker attacked the fire base while Sawyer, Sabatier, and Captain Mark Bannon assaulted Soviet defenses stationed around the town. Parker fought his way through the defenses and was able to destroy the fire base, relieving the pressure on Sabatier's men. Parker's force then assaulted the town and destroyed the Soviet defense posts, allowing Parker to establish a base of operations in the area. The Soviets then launched artillery barrages on the town and counterattacked against Parker's men. Despite their fierce assault, the NATO forces prevailed and the Soviets retreated, liberating the town. Despite heavy losses and enormous damage to the village itself, NATO was successful in rolling back the invaders to some extent. In the following days, NATO forces continued their assault and slowly regained control of the Southern provinces. Meanwhile, US naval forces engaged Soviet patrols in the Mediterranean, sustaining several losses but managing to keep Allied supply lanes open to the coast. Finally, the Americans discovered a Soviet Head Quarters in a large coastal village near the French-Italian border, and made plans for an assault on the city. Bannon and Sabatier were charged with defending the city from counterattacks while Parker and Sawyer assaulted the town. Parker secured the two bridges into the town and then cleared the city of its occupiers. After securing the town, the Soviets launched a massive assault to retake the town, and bypassed Sabatier's inferior force. Captain Bannon, against Colonel Sawyer's orders, detached from the Commandant to assist Parker in defending the town, leaving Sabatier vulnerable. Bannon and Parker joined forces and defended the besieged town at its two bridges. Despite facing waves of attackers, the two officers fought off the Soviets, securing the town and with it, the entire French coast. Unfortunately, Sabatier was assaulted by the Soviets while Bannon was assisting Parker, and the attack resulted in the destruction of Sabatier's force and the Commandant's death. Bannon returned to Sabatier's position only to find almost the entire force destroyed. Despite Sabatier's death, NATO and the US managed to stop the invasion. The Soviets lost control of the coastline and were forced to leave France. Aftermath The failure in taking over France was a severe blow to the Soviet war effort, as the French maintained control of their homeland and allowed NATO to refocus its attention to the fighting in Europe. Despite this victory, much of civilian infrastructure was damaged in France and the invasion's failure did little to turn the tide of the war. Nevertheless, the Soviets have yet to attempt such an attack on Western Europe again. Lieutenant Parker gained the respect of Colonel Sawyer's for his role in France's defense, but Captain Bannon was reprimanded for disobeying his superiors and for his role in Sabatier's death. Despite this, Bannon remained in Sawyer's command and would accompany the Colonel on his reconnaissance mission in Russia. See also *Seeing the Elephant *Deep Strike category:Battles